Ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s departure from the country was unplanned, according to a statement posted Monday on the Syrian Presidency Telegram account, purporting to be from Assad.
The statement claims Assad moved to Russia’s airbase in Syria’s Hmeimim on the morning of Sunday, December 8, and Russia asked him to evacuate when the base came under attack.
It’s unclear if Assad still controls the Telegram account. If the statement is authentic, it would mark the first time he has publicly commented on events since his regime fell this month.
“My departure from Syria was neither planned nor did it occur during the final hours of the battles, as some have claimed. On the contrary, I remained in Damascus, carrying out my duties until the early hours of Sunday 8th December 2024,” the statement from the Syrian Presidency account on Telegram said.
The statement also claims Assad learned after he arrived at Hmeimim airbase that “the last army positions had fallen.”
“With no viable means of leaving the base, Moscow requested that the base’s command arrange an immediate evacuation to Russia on the evening of Sunday 8th December. This took place a day after the fall of Damascus, following the collapse of the final military positions and the resulting paralysis of all remaining state institutions,” the statement said.
“At no point during these events did I consider stepping down or seeking refuge, nor was such a proposal made by any individual or party. The only course of action was to continue fighting against the terrorist onslaught,” the statement added.
Assad suggested that his position as president became “void of purpose” after the country was taken over by “terrorists.”
“When the state falls into the hands of terrorism and the ability to make a meaningful contribution is lost, any position becomes void of purpose, rendering its occupation meaningless.”
On the morning of December 8, Syrian rebels declared the capital of Damascus “liberated” after entering the city with very little resistance from regime forces.
Assad and his family arrived in Moscow after being granted asylum in Russia for what state media explained as “humanitarian reasons,” an official source in Russia told CNN on the night of December 8.
The Kremlin said last Wednesday that ensuring the security of Russia’s military bases and diplomatic missions in Syria was “of paramount importance,” noting that Moscow had maintained contact with the new leadership in Damascus.
“We must maintain contact with those who are controlling the situation on the ground because, as I mentioned, we have facilities and personnel there,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a regular press briefing.
Peskov declined to provide details on how many Russian troops are in Syria or the status of potential evacuations.
